How many times have you planned to do something, but never followed through? Think about it. “Oh, I have to go there some day.” Some day may never come if you don’t make real plans, dangit. The Great Lakes are worth exploring, for the memories, the pictures, the awe factor. Which reminds me of a recent trip to Oscoda, Michigan.

I took the family Up North last weekend to hang out with the in-laws. We do it every summer. The weather that weekend was lousy, hot as hell when it wasn’t raining. We managed to grab one great afternoon visiting Iargo Springs and Lumberman’s Monument.

If you’ve never been to either place, you should go. And not just plan to go, but actually go. Each site features a long wooden stairway that descends to the Au Sable River. It’s breathtaking in more ways than one.

And I was out of breath after going up and down the 300 steps at Iargo Springs. That’s 600 steps total. In humid Michigan. And I didn’t really want to go to Lumberman’s Monument and climb down another 280 steps. I’ve been down (and up) both stairways a couple times.

So we went to Lumberman’s, and I didn’t take the stairs. But I did take a path to the dunes. Yep. There are sand dunes there. A short path, less than a mile, all flat, took us to the sands. The kids and I, and their cousins and parents, were treated to a spectacular, one-of-a-kind view of the Au Sable River Valley.

Glad I did it. That’s my story for today. I also could relate this to climate change, and vanishing places, but I won’t.